If Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve is your pour and you'd like to spend a little less without leaving the taste behind, you don't have to go looking at other distilleries. The answer is one cupboard over in the same range. Glenfiddich 12, at $75, gives a Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve drinker about 96% of what their own bottle does. Same house, smaller number, nearly all of the whisky.
So what are you actually drinking? Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve is a 14-year-old Speyside, matured in bourbon barrels. The nose is woody and floral at the same time: a firm line of oak under heather, with vanilla, honey and barley, and a touch of citrus zest. The palate is well balanced, the finish long and easy. It's a tasty, inoffensive dram for a weeknight, and it doesn't ask much of you.
This week it's $113 for members at Dan Murphy's. Think of that as the going rate for a 14-year-old Speyside of this make. It works out to about $4.76 a standard drink across the roughly 24 standard drinks in the bottle, so a pour at home lands under the $6.28 a standard drink you'd pay for a $13 pint at the pub. The home dram comes in cheaper.
1/In-laws over for the roast, me on drinks duty. Father-in-law swirls his glass. 'Woody, little bit floral, oak and honey under it, touch of citrus. Well balanced, this. What've you poured me?' Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve, $113 for members at Dan Murphy's, I tell him.
2/'You on the same?' he asks, nodding at my glass. 'Nah — The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask, $151. Vanilla, toffee, a bit of banana, that sweet coconut off the rum casks. The good gear.' It usually sells around $161; against that the Glenfiddich sits at about 70% of the price.
3/So here it is, side by side: the Glenfiddich gives about 95% of what the Balvenie does, for 75% of the price. What a Balvenie drinker gives up is mostly the name on the label. The Balvenie for its fans; the Glenfiddich for every other night. Both a yes.
Like Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve? The Balvenie 12 American Oak, $99, gives a Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve drinker about 94% of it, at 88% of the price. Honey and navel orange. More on Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve in this week's piece.
Hand a Glen Moray 18 drinker the Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve and they'd pay 88% of what their own bottle costs. They dock it a touch for the younger years, not the dram: oak, heather, honey. Worth a pour? The full read on Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve is in this week's piece.
A Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve poured at home works out at $4.76 a standard drink, about 24 to the bottle. A pint at the pub sits nearer $6.28 a drink, so the couch is quietly ahead. That's the price per pour; the full tasting is in this week's piece.
The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 usually sells around $170. This week it's $160 at Dan Murphy's. In the glass: Christmas cake, jaffa oranges, old leather. Full and smooth, a long finish, a last hint of smoke. Want to know who else it suits? That's in this week's piece.
The Macallan Sherry Oak 12, poured after a long Tuesday: sherry, Christmas cake, old leather, a wisp of smoke. Want that without the full $160? The Macallan 12 Double Cask, $137, gives a Sherry Oak drinker 98% of it for 86% of the price. Fair swap? More in this week's piece.
Hand a Glenfiddich 15 drinker The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 and they'd pay 68% of what their own bottle costs, a generous nod from a neighbour and reason enough to pour one yourself. The rest of the story waits in this week's piece on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12.
Christmas cake and Jaffa oranges, a little old leather, then a last hint of smoke: The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 is one to pour slowly of an evening. This week it is $160 at Dan Murphy's; it usually sells around $170. More on where that price sits in this week's piece.
The odd part: The Balvenie DoubleWood 12, at $105, hands a The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 drinker about 87% of what their own bottle gives, for 66% of its price. Honey, almonds, a touch of nutmeg. The rest of the story on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 is in this week's piece.
Like The Macallan Sherry Oak 12? Glenfiddich 15 gives you about 74% of what it does, for 87% of the price, at $140. Cooked plums and stewed rhubarb on the nose, then hedgerow fruit and a little grip on the palate. More on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 in this week's piece.
Friday night, two bottles out on the bench and no one able to pick a favourite. The Glendronach 12, $110: a sherried Highland malt that's at its best when the sherry doesn't crowd it out, and this one lets the spirit through. Glenfiddich 18, $175: oak and fresh apple, barley and cereal, dried fruit and a touch of toffee, Christmas-pudding sweetness and a warm cinnamon finish, about $7.92 a pour at home. Two malts cut from close cloth. This week at Dan Murphy's the pair comes to $285; usually they're $294, and the same two are $328 at Liquorland this week. Which would you reach for first?
Rum casks leave their mark. The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask, $151 at Dan Murphy's, opens banoffee-sweet with vanilla, toffee and banana, then turns soft and silky with pineapple, papaya and mango. More on it in this week's piece. Which fruit do you catch first?
Had them both open this week. Love The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask? Glenfiddich 14 Bourbon Reserve gives you about 95% of it for 75% of the price, $113 for members. Oak, heather, a little vanilla. Which one's on your bench tonight? More in this week's piece on the Balvenie.
Pour The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask: soft and silky, vanilla and toffee sliding into pineapple and mango from the rum casks. A Glenfiddich Gran Reserva 21 drinker would put 67% of their own bottle's price on it, a younger whisky than theirs. More in this week's piece.
The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask is $6.36 a standard drink, about 24 to the bottle. That's 242nd of 310 at Dan Murphy's per standard drink. A pint at the pub is about $6.28 a drink. A pour at home lands just over. More on The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask in this week's piece.
The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask is $151 at Dan Murphy's this week, a little under the $161 it usually sells around, so if those sweet-and-tropical notes are where you want to be the price sits in easy reach right now. More on it in this week's piece.
Here's the surprise: Craigellachie 13, at $111, gives a The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask drinker about 93% of what that bottle does, for 74% of its price. Grilled pineapple, caramel, a twist of grapefruit. Tempting before you reach for the Balvenie? More in this week's piece.
Bottle open on the bench, a cold night. Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23: apricots in syrup and apple blossom on the nose, then pears, vanilla and warm white bread, a finish of toffee and coffee. $511 this week; it usually sells around $559. More in this week's piece.
Like Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23? For a drinker of it, Glen Moray 21 gives about 75% of what that bottle does, for 59% of the price, at $304 for members this week. Subtle oolong, ripe red fruits and Tawny Port, honey and oak over a creamy palate. Pour one; more in this week's piece.
Small one from this week's piece on Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23: hand it to a Glen Moray 15 drinker and they'd gladly pay 72% of what their own bottle costs just to have it instead, which is about the nearest answer going. The rest of it's waiting for you in the article.
I ran the numbers on a single pour: Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 comes to $23.13 a standard drink, about 22 in the $511 bottle, which sits it 300th of 310 at Dan Murphy's that way. A pint runs $6.28 a drink, so a pour at home is well over that. More in this week's piece.
Curious what Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 is doing this week? It's $511 at Dan Murphy's. It usually sells around $559, so this week sits a touch under. A guide, not a rush. More on it in this week's piece. Pour one and see where it lands for you.
Like Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23? Tomintoul 21 gives you about 77% of it, for 67% of the price. This week it's $340 for members. Floral fruits, sweet barley, a long almond-and-vanilla finish. Pour one yourself. The full piece on Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 is up this week.
Glenfiddich 18 opens on oak and fresh apple wound through barley, then settles into fruit cake and Christmas pudding warmed with cinnamon, smooth and easy, a pour that suits anyone easing into a long evening. This week it's $175 at Dan Murphy's. More in this week's piece.
Fond of Glenfiddich 18? A Glenfiddich 18 drinker gets about 95% of what that bottle gives from Glengoyne 15, at 74% of the price, and it's $130 for members this week. Sherry, vanilla, a little ginger. Pour one and see. More in this week's piece on Glenfiddich 18.
Glenfiddich 18 opens on oak and fresh apple, then a smooth palate of fruit cake and cinnamon. Hand it to an Edradour 10 drinker and they'd pay 71% of what their own bottle costs, marking it down for the extra years. More on Glenfiddich 18 in this week's piece.
I noticed the apple and toffee on the Glenfiddich 18 first, then oak, barley and a warm cinnamon spice through the finish. At $175 it works out to $7.92 a pour at home, a touch over a $13 pint at the pub. More on it in this week's piece.
The Glenfiddich 18 is $175 at Dan Murphy's this week, which is right where it usually sells, so I'd call it a steady price rather than a moment to pounce. I've pulled the whole picture together in this week's piece, if you want the neighbours and the pours set out beside it.
Glengoyne 15 leans sherry: vanilla, ginger and toffee on the nose, a note of worn leather. The palate turns oily, raisins and hazelnuts over oak, then a spicy finish dusted with cocoa. $130 for members at Dan Murphy's this week. Pour one and see. More in this week's piece.
Where does Glengoyne 15 land with its neighbours? An Edradour 10 drinker would pay 85% of what their own bottle costs for it, docking it for the extra years. One for the sherried-malt drinker. Pour the two side by side — more in this week's piece.
Glengoyne 15 is $130 this week at Dan Murphy's, about 24 standard drinks in the bottle, so a pour at home runs $5.47 a drink, 215th of 310 that way. A pint at the pub sits near $6.28 a standard drink. Pour one and see where it lands for you. More in this week's piece.
| bottle | region | latest ticket | read | window price | CE 360° mean | premium | shelf rank | per std drink | drink rank | content |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GLENFIDDICH 12YO SHERRY CASK FINISH | Speyside | $136.99 | observed | $136.99 | $125.82 | 8.2% | #42 of 79 | $5.77 | #45 of 75 | 3 |
| Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 1L | Speyside | $110.99 | observed | $77.69 | $74.96 | 3.5% | #22 of 79 | $3.52 | #26 of 75 | 0 |
| Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | Speyside | $74.95 | observed | $75.95 | $73.38 | 3.4% | #21 of 79 | $3.39 | #24 of 75 | 6 |
| Glenfiddich 14YO Bourbon Res | Speyside | $118.99 | observed | $129.99 | $122.47 | 5.8% | #34 of 79 | $4.76 | #40 of 75 | 14 |
| Glenfiddich 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Speyside | $139.99 | observed | $139.99 | $129.19 | 7.7% | #40 of 79 | $6.34 | #51 of 75 | 17 |
| Glenfiddich 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Highlands | $174.90 | observed | $174.90 | $150.52 | 13.9% | #18 of 38 | $7.92 | #28 of 36 | 15 |
| Glenfiddich Experiment 02 Project XX Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Speyside | $148.99 | observed | $148.99 | $122.64 | 17.7% | #71 of 79 | $4.35 | #34 of 75 | 0 |
| Glenfiddich Fire & Cane Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Speyside | $100.99 | observed | $108.99 | $101.45 | 6.9% | #36 of 79 | $4.25 | #33 of 75 | 0 |
| Glenfiddich Gran Reserva 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Speyside | $327.99 | observed | $298.95 | $260.83 | 12.8% | #56 of 79 | $14.85 | #65 of 75 | 19 |
| Glenfiddich Grand Cru 23 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky | Speyside | $510.99 | observed | $558.99 | $427.46 | 23.5% | #73 of 79 | $23.13 | #70 of 75 | 8 |